First baseman Kayli Kvistad took the batter’s box in the top of the seventh inning with a blank expression as cheers rang out from JoAnne Graf Field Wednesday night. The crowd had been rambunctious long before she stepped up to the plate.
With each pitch, the crowd got louder. And louder. And louder until Kvistad was down to her final strike.
After swinging and missing at the yellow sphere, the Seminoles immediately started to celebrate their home victory over their biggest non-conference rival.
The Gators softball team fell to FSU 4-1 as UF wrapped up its five-game road stretch on Wednesday night in Tallahassee.
The No. 15 Seminoles (34-7, 11-1 ACC) got on the board in quick fashion grabbing their first run in the home half of the first with a homer to center field from Carsyn Gordon.
The No. 6 Gators (34-7, 9-3 SEC) answered back in the top of the third with a double off the right-field wall from Kvistad, allowing enough time for center fielder Alex Voss to round third base and reach home safely.
FSU pulled ahead again in the bottom of the fourth with a single up the middle off Zoe Casas, which allowed FSU’s top batter Sydney Sherrill to make the run home, putting the Seminoles up 2-1.
Pitcher Aleshia Ocasio (14-5) took control of the circle for the first five innings, tossing 83 pitches and eight strikeouts before freshman Natalie Lugo relieved her.
Back-to-back runs for the Seminoles scored in the bottom of the fifth sealed Ocasio’s fate. She finished the night having allowed five hits and four earned runs.
Walton said putting Ocasio in the circle was an easy decision after Kelly Barnhill’s 130 pitches in Monday’s matchup at Alabama.
“I think (Ocasio) pitched OK,” coach Tim Walton said. “I think at the end of the day, location is key.”
Despite the subpar outing for the senior, Ocasio still managed to get out of a few tight spots. One of her highlight moments of the night was striking out back-to-back batters in the bottom of the fourth with the bases loaded.
The Seminoles put their trust in pitcher Kylee Hanson (20-3). The redshirt senior threw 109 pitches, striking out five batters and only allowing two hits on the night.
A series of fly outs in the back of the diamond and inefficient at-bats were contributing factors to the loss for the Gators. Nearly half of the outs Hanson recorded came via fly balls.
It’s the second meeting in a row the Gators have lost to the Seminoles. The Gators still lead the all-time series record at 24-15, but Walton said he thinks his squad could've added one more to the win column had Florida gotten a few timely hits.
“The key is the little things,” Walton said. “Most important part for us…is being able to hit in scoring position.”
The Gators will hope to get back into the swing of things this weekend as the take on the South Carolina Gamecocks back home at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
Follow Mari Faiello on Twitter @faiello_mari and contact her at mfaiello@alligator.org.
First baseman Kayli Kvistad drove in the Gators' lone run in a 4-1 loss against FSU on Wednesday.
